Oct. 30, 2017 | LITTLE ROCK — Lyle J. Burdine, M.D., Ph.D., has joined the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) as a kidney, liver and pancreas transplant surgeon.

Burdine also serves as an assistant professor in the UAMS College of Medicine’s Department of Surgery. Burdine will perform kidney and liver transplants, as well as combined kidney-pancreas transplants. UAMS is the only center in Arkansas that offers adult liver or kidney transplantation.

“There is a great need for transplants of this type in Arkansas,” said Daniel Borja-Cacho, M.D., director of the Liver Transplant Program at UAMS. “In addition to hiring highly qualified, fellowship-trained surgeons like Burdine, we are using technology such as computer-aided matches between donors and transplant recipients to bring these life-saving transplants to more patients.”

Burdine said there have been big advances in the transplant field.

“If you haven’t qualified for a transplant in the past, it’s time to ask again,” Burdine said. “More people than ever before can successfully undergo these procedures.”

Burdine obtained bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and philosophy from Duke University and an M.D./Ph.D. from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He completed his residency in general surgery at UAMS and a fellowship in abdominal transplants from the University of California San Francisco.

UAMS is the state’s only health sciences university, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; hospital; northwest Arkansas regional campus; statewide network of regional centers; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, Myeloma Institute, Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging and Translational Research Institute. It is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 2,834 students, 822 medical residents and six dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide care to patients at UAMS, its regional campuses throughout the state, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.